Beyond Wild Imaginings (15 page)

It was right around then that Kelly decided that she adored her best friend. She’d always loved him, but he launched into the game so completely that she could only stare at him in awe. He pointed to the kitchen door and said it was the gateway to the world they were trying to travel to, and he winked at Garren as he did so. He took the idea of the game and wrapped himself in it like it was a piece of clothing. It was real to him. He made it real, and Kelly filled with so much affection for him she thought she might cry. He knew how important it was for her to get Rachel to remember. She hadn’t really told him, but with the caliber of friend he was, he knew anyway.

“Kelly!”

She snapped back to the present at her sister’s sharp exclamation. She frowned and glanced over at Rachel, who was standing half in the kitchen.

“Are you coming?” she asked. “Come on, we only have a few seconds to get through. Otherwise the portal is going to close!”

Kelly wanted to laugh out loud, but she held it in. Seeing her aristocratic, too-good-for-anything sister revert to childhood was the most amazing thing she had ever witnessed. Maybe it was the rum. She didn’t know. She didn’t care. It was just nice to see. She ran over to the kitchen to join Chad and Rachel.

Rachel whirled and pointed. “And yours... He was really tall and had brown hair. He had big, black wings, didn’t he?” She frowned. “Wait, black wings? Didn’t you say you were dreaming about a guy with black wings?”

Kelly nodded again. “Yeah, I was.”

Rachel shook her head. “What was his name? I don’t really remember.” A look of concentration came over her features as she thought, but she waved it away. “Well, I guess it doesn’t matter. When I see him again, I’ll ask him. I’m sure he won’t mind telling me. It’s been a long time. I hope he isn’t offended.” She waved her hands again, as if to erase her scattered thoughts. “Anyway, I won’t get to ask him anything if we don’t get through the portal.” She blinked. “Is the room spinning?”

“Come on!” Rachel prodded. “We have to go! We only have a few seconds left!” She spun on her heel and went to plow through the kitchen door, but she jumped back and screamed bloody murder.

Garren had been standing there in the doorway the entire time and he winced.

Rachel screamed again and staggered backward. “Oh my gosh!” she cried. “Where did he come from?” She stabbed her finger at Garren and placed her other hand over her heart.

Kelly’s eyes bulged, and she looked from Chad to Garren and back to Rachel. “You can see him?”

Rachel gave Kelly an are-you-out-of-your-mind look. “Of course I can see him! He’s standing right there! He gave me a freakin’ heart attack!”

Garren’s sudden intake of breath drew Kelly’s attention to him, and she frowned in concern as he held his hands out in front of him. He looked bewildered and alarmed.

“Garren, are you okay?”

“Is
he
okay?” Rachel screeched. “He scares me half to death and you ask if
he’s
okay?”

Kelly drew in a shaky breath as she watched Garren go from semi-transparent to solid, then flicker for a few moments like the light of a candle before he stayed solid. She whispered his name and met his eyes, stunned.

Garren stared at Kelly for a long moment before looking back at Rachel. He approached her slowly and unfurled his wings in a way that seemed predatory and slightly intimidating.

Rachel let out a little shout and staggered backwards. “Oh dear lord,” she murmured as she stared up at Garren. “Kelly, what was in that bottle?” She blinked, as if trying to clear his image from her vision, and she trembled from head to toe.

Garren looked back at Kelly. “She helped create my world,” he stated. “She shares the same connection with me that I have with you. Allow me to show her what she doesn’t know.” His eyes softened, and he smiled. “I promise it will be nothing like the way I showed you.”

Kelly gave him a gentle smile and nodded. “Show her, Garren. She needs to know.”

Rachel blinked rapidly, obviously completely confused and disoriented. “Wha… Show me what? Don’t come near me!” She jumped away from Garren as he came closer and stumbled over her own feet.

Garren reached out and grasped her arm to keep her from falling, and then in one, fluid movement, he pulled her into his arms and lowered his lips to hers.

Kelly felt a twinge of jealousy for a moment, but knew it was just human reaction. She knew Garren had to kiss Rachel in order to show her what she needed to know, and he was holding her gently so as not to alarm her even further, but he was not kissing her with passion like he had kissed Kelly the night before. It looked like a rehearsed kiss, like a stage kiss, and nothing more.

After a few moments, Garren released Rachel, who gasped and stumbled backward again. He grasped her arm to keep her from falling yet again and steadied her.

“Oh my gosh,” Rachel all but wheezed. “Oh my gosh. I think I’m gonna hyperventilate. What’s going on?” Her eyes were wild and frantic as she sought out Kelly. When their gazes locked, her brow furrowed. “Kelly, what the crap is going on?”

She sounded on the verge of hysteria, and Kelly ran to her. “Rachel, breathe. Come sit down.” She helped her sister to the couch and Garren stood close by, but not too close, trying not to frighten Rachel anymore than he already had. Kelly glanced up at him. “The wings, Garren. Could you put them away? I think you made your point.”

He gave a sheepish smile, blushed slightly, and retracted his wings.

Rachel snatched the bottle of rum off the coffee table and took a huge drink out of it, then slammed it back down on the table. Several unsavory curse words came out of her mouth before she shook her head and let out a long, slow breath. “Okay, I feel better.”

Kelly and Chad exchanged a look, and Kelly snickered.

Rachel managed to gather herself with a great amount of dignity under the circumstances, and she turned a level gaze to Garren. She pointed at him. “First of all, you did not have to purposely scare me even more than you already had. Second, I’m sure communication would have been a lot more gentlemanly than manhandling me into a kiss that instantly flooded my brain with visions. Third, I want a freakin’ explanation, and I want it right now!”

Chapter Twelve

Kelly didn’t know what to do with Rachel. She hadn’t really expected her to take things so hard. She’d explained to her about Garren’s race and the Creative Realm, and now Rachel sat on the floor against the couch with tears streaming down her face, nursing the remaining bottle of rum.

“Rachel, please get off the floor,” she pleaded. “Give me the rum.”

She clutched the bottle and scowled up at Kelly. “I just found out I’m a murderer,” she snapped. “I think that gives me rights to drink.”

Kelly’s heart twisted at her sister’s distraught expression. She never thought that Rachel would remember their game enough to be able to see Garren, and she definitely hadn’t expected her to believe so much that it would turn Garren solid. It was horrible, but she really hadn’t believed that there was enough humanity left in Rachel for her to be upset over the death of her guardian. She was happy that Rachel proved her wrong, but felt at a loss as to what to do.

“I killed an entire race of people,” Rachel murmured, more tears cascading down her cheeks.

Kelly shook her head and knelt in front of her sister. “It wasn’t just you, Rachel. It was all of us.”

She sniffed. “Speak for yourself, Kelly! Your guardian is standing right here in front of you!” She shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut. “I murdered mine.” She put her face in her hands, then snapped her eyes back up to Kelly. “I remember when I turned my back on you, Kelly. I thought I was too good for you. I thought I was too grown up to play silly games. I was mean and cruel, and I’ve been mean and cruel ever since then! I always thought I was so much better than you because I had a normal job and a normal life! I always thought you were a freak! What kind of sister thinks that?” She wiped at her eyes, but it was useless. More tears just replaced the ones she wiped away. “The whole time I was acting so superior, you were the one who was better than me! I’m so sorry, Kelly.” She put her face back in her hands and let out a little sob.

Kelly blinked in bewilderment. “Rachel…” She couldn’t even formulate words. She had wanted to hear her sister acknowledge her for the longest time, but she hadn’t envisioned it like this. Rachel was crushed, and Kelly had no idea how to console her. How could she when, even though the words she spoke against herself were harsh, they were true?

She felt a light touch on her shoulder and she looked up at Garren. He gave her a soft smile. “Can I?” He gestured to Rachel.

Kelly moved out of the way, more than willing to let him have a go at comforting her. She felt stuck and dumb, like someone had stunned her to the point of stupidity. She glanced up at Chad, who hovered nearby. He glanced at Rachel as Garren sat down beside her, and he snatched the bottle of rum from her when she wasn’t looking.

“Hey!” Rachel cried. “Give that back!” She lunged at Chad, but Garren pulled her into his arms. Rachel immediately buried her face against his shoulder and cried. “I’m so sorry,” she mumbled over and over.

Kelly noted how soft his voice was. It was the most soothing sound she’d ever heard. It comforted
her,
and she wasn’t even upset. She let her eyes travel over him as he attempted to console her sister. He was so kind. He’d held no love in his heart for Rachel after her demeaning attitude and antics with Roger, but there he was, holding her and speaking soft words to her…like all the guardians had done in times past. Maybe it was ingrained in him to do so, to take care of the Kindred Spirit Sisters no matter what, but Kelly thought it was awfully selfless and very commendable.

“Rachel, look at me.” He took her by the shoulders and pushed her back so that he could reach up and wipe at her tears. “You cannot take all of the blame on yourself. There were five of you. All of you played a part in the obliteration of my race.”

“Even me,” Kelly added softly. Garren looked over at her, and she averted her gaze. She swallowed. “Rachel, I all but forgot too. Garren was trapped in nothing more than a prison for twenty years. I did that to him.” Her voice sounded faint in her own ears, raspy and whispering.

She looked up as she felt fingers encircle her wrist, and she let Garren guide her down to sit on the other side of him. He slipped his arm around her and pulled her close to him, directing all of his attention on her, even though he still held Rachel with his other arm.

“You brought me back,” he murmured, touching her face tenderly. “That is all that matters to me.” He turned his attention back to Rachel. “And you, because you remembered me and believed, you brought me back into solid form. I did not think I would ever be more than half a man, a semi-transparent representation of what I once was. The two of you, together, have done remarkable things.” He looked back at Kelly. “You in particular, my beautiful one.”

Kelly felt her face flush, and she buried it against Garren’s shoulder. She closed her eyes and relished how strong he was, how solid his body felt. She slipped her arm around his waist and snuggled close to him, needing his nearness and his warmth. She was coming to realize that it was something she needed on a regular basis.

“Garren…” Rachel shook her head as she searched for words. “I just don’t even know what to say, or what to think. Eamon…” Fat tears hung on her lashes again, and her bottom lip trembled. “I can’t do anything for him? I can’t bring him back? I remember him now. Shouldn’t that make a difference?”

Yes,
Kelly thought to herself.
It should, and I believe it does, even if only on the smallest level.

Garren’s eyes were gentle, but he shook his head sadly. “I’m sorry, Rachel. A creature of thought can’t be brought back once they’re gone.”

That’s a falsity. I proved that wrong. I intend to do it again, when I figure out how.

Rachel’s face contorted, and she started to cry again. “I didn’t know you were real,” she whispered. “I had no idea you really existed. I’m so sorry.” Her shoulders trembled with her sobs and she shook her head. “My life never had room for fanciful things. I didn’t have time to believe in the extraordinary.”

“It is common,” Garren replied. “You are not alone. Many people lose their belief after childhood. I was lucky.” He met Kelly’s eyes again with something close to blind devotion shining in his own. She reached up and ran her fingers across his jaw in a gentle caress. He closed his eyes and pulled his arm away from her so he could trap her palm against his cheek. Slowly, he slid it down to his lips, where he pressed an intimate kiss.

Chad handed Rachel a box of tissues he had managed to locate, and she blew her nose rather loudly. “This is stressful,” he commented. He sat down on the arm of Kelly’s couch and ran his fingers through his hair. “Invisible men, imaginary creatures coming to life, genocide…” He blew his cheeks out with a large exhale. “We need a vacation.”